Tau Ceti Node: The Rama Series Discussion

Sure there's an Arthur C. Clarke discussion thread, but there hasn't been a Rama discussion thread.

I heard that there's going to be a Rama movie. However, it will be 2004-2005 before we get to see it.

Still, what did you think?

I find it really interesting. The way that Clarke puts religon into it is most interesting.

I also think that Gentry Lee wrote the smut in the last 3 books. That isn't Clarke's style. It wasn't in Rendezvous With Rama. Darn you Lee! You just had to turn it into a Soap Opera!

Still, thoughts, reactions, criticisms...

EDIT: Oh... If you're wondering why I named it Rama IV, there have been three Ramas. This is the fourth...

However, the Ramans do everything in threes.

//changes thread name

 

I heard that there was going to be a movie, but I did not relize it was going to be a sequal to the books.

I loved the First Rama. The others were a decent read as far as the Rama ship and the Ramans themselves but the story degraded as the series went on.
What started as good Science Fiction, turned into a soap opera with less an less speculation.
Rama got me interested in O'niel colonies: large spinning cylinders to house people(big enough to house millions with plenty of elbow room). So Rama was like one of these colonies with a powerful drive system attached to get around the galaxy.

Ultimatley, if we cannot create a faster-than-light drive, Rama is the type of craft that can be used to colonize other worlds.

I'm gonna get a little speculative,
The colonies themselves can be propelled from the home system using the home star as the power supply for large space based lasers which reflect of a mag sail connected to the colony(this is not how Rama worked bare with me). Once at a decent velocity the ship itself can use its own drive (Fusion-ion drive, matter/anti matter drive etc) to change course and go where desired. A magsail connected will enable fuel savings because you will not have to use fuel to slow down, instead, the mag sail itself will slow the craft down from any speed once it meets the solar wind and light output from the target star. Explore, move on, perhaps settle, or maybe settle, then build, then move on again. Neat huh?

 

Rise, my friend.

Pun intended...

(Read my latest posts)

 

I'm not sure what siries you mean, but all the franteritys at Baylor have names like that.

 

Uppers.

If you want to read the Rama series, start with Rendezvous with Rama.

Rendezvous With Rama is by far the best.

The last three are one big soap opera though.

Then read Rama II. Garden of Rama makes no sense without Rama II. Then read Garden of Rama as Rama Revealed makes no sense without reading Garden of Rama.

 

Doesn't anyone wish to discuss Rama?

 

Rendezvous With Rama=Highlander I
Rama 2=Highlander II
Rama 3=Highlander III
Rama 4=Highlander IV


Rendezvous was awesome. I do not think I have ever read a better piece of SciFi. When Clarke brought in Gentry Lee for the sequels it became Melrose Place in Space.


There was talk about making Rendezvous a movie with Morgan Freeman as the Commander. Anyone heard if this is still in the works?


I have wondered since I read the book (Almost 10 years ago) if the starship in Star Trek IV that speaks to the whales is an homage to Clarke's Rama.

 

I love Rendezvous with Rama and the final sentence of the book (The Ramans do everything in threes [paraphrase]) was a good opportunity to create a great trilogy. Obviously Clarke got bored of it and came up (possibly) with a few ideas and gave it to Gentrry Lee who produced yet another hack work. I had to stop readin after the second chapter of the second book: it was hideous.

The film is at Morgan Freeman's company Revolution Entertainment and will be filmed by Fincher. A recent draft of the script was reviewed by Patrick Sauriol at Corona and he really liked what he saw. The draft ends slightly differently from the book but it is interesting nonetheless. It has been in development for nearly five years and it should be out by 2004 if everything goes well.

 

I was able to make it half way through Garden of Rama, and got sick of it when Earth started sending colonists to Rama. For me, the magic that was the first book had been beaten into a bloody pulp, and left to die a sad, lonely death.